We're Brothers, We're Brothers EP Release

About three or four years ago at a bar on the N St. Mary's strip beyond the brim of memory, I caught my first Lonely Horse show. Nick Long’s voice was powerful enough to have its own gravitational pull to bring in an audience and he’s able to channel his soul through a guitar that escapes through the speakers.

When I met him in person, it was then that I learned that there are two voices to this one man. One that is his natural demeanor of calm and serene, and the other his stage presence where the musical artist lets out all of his emotions and talent.

Nick’s newest endeavor is a project titled 'We’re brothers We’re brothers' and is about to release an EP titled ‘drowningburningsleepinglearning’ which combines both entities within this one person.

After helping Nick re-pot some succulents using the same tender slide of hand he uses he uses with his guitars, we sat down and listened to ‘drowningburningsleepinglearning,’ set to release May 23 at the Brick at Blue Star Complex. The E.P. has tracks that have been almost three years in the making and is extremely personal to Long. Afterwards, we tried exploring the abandoned house across the street and chatted more about the newest endeavor.

“I think I was born with music in me,” he tells me when asked about his musical origins.

“‘We’re brothers, We’re brothers’ is actually the first EP Lonely Horse put out. I liked the songs so much because they were story songs and I wanted to put out, kind of like side stories to the songs. I just write stories about my family… family stories. Old wise tales, things like that,” Nick explained.

The album is different from anything Lonely Horse has released before, but with the same amount of heart and soul.

“With this project, I have the freedom to do more of what I want to do. It’s just easier for me. I feel like I can expand more with this,” Nick said. “Lonely Horse is already pretty expansive as it is and improvisational, I think anymore would be out of control but with We’re Brothers I can kind of write however long I want and put as much into the song as I want , not having to worry about how long it is or this and that.”

Where Lonely Horse is often bluesy and heavy rock with distorted riffs, “We’re brothers We’re brothers” is much more serene and tranquil, touching on deeper aspects of the heart that ebb and flow, with thought and emotion.

“This is the best song I have ever written,” Long explained while playing the soft humming lullaby found on the track ‘You Must Stay Inside’.” “It was raining outside and I was playing this for my son as he was falling asleep if you listen closely you can hear him crying himself to sleep in the background.”

On another track titled “Please,” the melodies and harmonies reflect a desert soul, or the soundtrack of an old western film-noir. The track has emotion cuts through the frequency grit eloquently but the grit reflects that of an old soul.

“I put a lot of emotion into this album I’ve never released an EP or album under ‘We’re Brothers,’ this would be a collection of songs over many years.” Long explained the album touches on a wide range of emotions that almost everybody goes through in today’s society. “Everything is kind of backwards and we’re still trying to cope with all of this stuff. It’s a very spiritual, uplifting album I think.”

Long has an array of musicians that have been assisting him such as Jeff Palacios from Femina X and Melanie Robinson. Apart from unveiling personal songs and music, Nick is also unveiling a small art installation that corresponds with the 'drowningburningsleepinglearning' EP and will be selling small succulent plants as a reflection of his “happy place”, which is in the garden.

The EP release will be at Brick at Blue star Complex on Saturday May 23 at 8 p.m. where there will be performances by Of The Lion, Man_Alone, Shiva's Medicine Chest, and Levees as well as live art by The Art of Josie V, Albert Gonzales Art and Robert Krammerer.

For more information please visit the event's page: https://www.facebook.com/events/694600430651668/